[/color]#1: What is a Mod? #2: Where do I find these mods? #3: I have a mod I want to add to the game. How do I install it? #4: What’s a ‘QBShips’ line and a ‘QBShips.txt’ file? #5: I’ve placed the QBShips line in the QBShips.txt file, but the game crashes, saying it can't find it! What's up here? #6: The mods I’ve downloaded work okay in Quick Battle, but I can’t select them in Multiplayer. Why is this? #7: Can I use mods in the Single Player Campaign? #8: What is a Phasrtex.dat file? #9: I’ve heard the term ‘Warez’, but what is it? #10: What’s QB2? #11: I’ve got a kickass computer, but Klingon Academy lags. What gives? #12: I’m running KA on Windows XP, and I'm experiencing "fire-lag". How do I fix this? #13: I’ve heard the term ‘NGA’. What is this? [color=DarkOrange]#14: What tools do I need to create my own mods? [/color] [color=Red]______________________________________________[/color]

[color=DarkOrange] #1: What is a Mod? [/color][color=PaleGreen]

A: Mods are modifications or add-ons that players have created for Klingon Academy. [/color]These can be downloaded from various sites as .zip, .rar, or .exe files. Virtually everything in Klingon Academy can be modded: ships, weapons, planetary systems, loading screens, missions, etc. These can range in complexity from something as simple as changing a weapon’s firing rate to total conversions of the game.

[color=DarkOrange]#2: Where do I find these mods?

A: Mods are available in a wide variety of places.[/color] The current central source for Klingon Academy mods is at www.moddersplanet.com. As well, you’ll notice a lot of links in the signatures (or ‘sigs’) at the bottom of modders’ posts in the KA.com Forum. These will either be direct links to the mods themselves or the modder’s webpages where their mods will be hosted.

#3: I have a mod I want to add to the game. How do I install it?

[color=PaleGreen] A: Adding a mod to Klingon Academy is fairly simple. [/color] The mod file you’ve downloaded will likely come as a .zip or .exe file. In it will be a set of bitmaps, text and object files. These files should already be included in their proper folders within the downloaded file, and these folders can be installed directly under your main ‘Klingon Academy’ directory. Make sure you read any ‘readme’ files that come with the mod for any special instructions.

[color=DarkOrange]#4: What’s a ‘QBShips’ line and a ‘QBShips.txt’ file?

A: The QBShips.txt contains the list for your QuickBattle menu.[/color] This is the only file you will have to set up and alter yourself to get most mods running. Each mod should include a readme file that contains this line, and is just a mater of copy/pasting the line into the QBShips.txt file. This file will be found under the ‘scripts’ folder (set up by you) in the ‘klingonacademy’ directory. A tutorial explaining more about QBShips lines can be found here:

[color=DarkOrange]#5: I’ve placed the QBShips line in the QBShips.txt file, but the game crashes, saying it can't find it! What's up here?

A: This is usually due to a discrepancy between the ship’s name in the .shp file and the QBShips.txt line.[/color] Basicly, the “Name” entry in the .shp file must match the latter half of the line placed in the QBShips file exactly (everything following the “=”). Check to make sure the spelling in the line that’s provided in the mod’s readme and what is in the QBShips file match exactly, including any extra spaces that occur at the end of the line. If the error still persists, the modder may have accidentally misspelled the line. Contacting the modder about this issue will allow them to correct the mistake in the download and they’ll be able to provide you with the corrected line. If the modder is unavailable, instructions on how to derive the proper QBShips line from the mod’s .shp file can be found in the link included in the previous entry in this FAQ.

[color=DarkOrange]#6: The mods I’ve downloaded work okay in Quick Battle, but I can’t select them in Multiplayer. Why is this?

A: Klingon Academy mods were only intended for use in Quick Battle, not in Multiplayer.[/color] [color=PaleTurquoise]This was Interplay’s attempt to prevent online cheating, as the ships can be very easily modified to become incredibly powerful. However, a set of scripted environments has been made by RedHotChiliDog to allow players to select modded ships in Multiplayer. For a ship to be selected each participating computer must have the same mod installed on it, otherwise the game will generate a “Data Mismatch” error RedHotChiliDog’s QBShips Multiplay scripts can be downloaded at:

A: The Phasrtex.dat file is a text file that tells KA what phaser graphics to use on particular mods.[/color] This is simply another text file where you simply cut/paste the line included in the mod’s readme into it. This file is placed directly under the ‘klingonacademy’ folder, and not in the scripts folder. Not all mods will require lines to be inserted into this file, just ones with phaser or disruptor graphics that aren’t included with the game.

[color=DarkOrange]#9: I’ve heard the term ‘Warez’, but what is it?

A: Warez is a term used for illegally distributed software.[/color] You’ll run into this term from time to time, and software companies take this matter very seriously. As a consequence, discussion of ‘warez’ is banned from the KlingonAcademy.com message boards, so as to avoid any scrutiny (and potential legal action) from the software companies whose products were used in this game. Asking for such pirated software can result in the asker being banned, so it’s best to avoid the subject in these forums.

#10: What’s QB2?

[color=PaleGreen] A: QB2 is short for QuickBattle 2. [/color]This is a scripting package by Uwe Brinkschulte that allows players to set up custom battles and missions with far more flexibility than what the standard Quick Battle can provide. Multitudes of scripts have been written, and can be found in the same manner as ship mods as outlined in the “Where do I find these mods?” question at the top of this FAQ. Another version of this is RedHotChiliDog’s Modified Quick Battle, of which allows a great deal of more options than the standard QB. Both Uwe’s QB2 and RHCD’s MQB are hosted at:

A: [/color]Fire-lag is the sudden pause you may experience when firing a weapon at a target within your weapon's range. It's quite aggravating, but there are two methods of fixing the problem, changing XP's ACPI settings , and adjusting the 3D refresh rate override:

Method #1: Changing Win XP's hardware settings:

[color=Red][NOTE: This solution should only be implemented by players with single processors/single-core processors. Players with dual-core/multiple processors installed may lose XP functionality in one of the processors.][/color]

Click the Start button, right-click on My Computer and select Properties. Select the Hardware tab and hit the Device Manager button. Expand the Computer entry and double-click ACPI Multiprocessor PC. Go to the Driver tab, and hit the Update Driver button. Select the Install from a list... option and click the Next button. Select Don't Search and hit the Next button again. Select Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC (if this is unavailable select Standard PC) and click Next again. Allow the computer to install the new drivers and reboot as needed (probably twice). The next time you play KA, the fire-lag should be gone.

[/color][NOTE: This solution is preferable for players with dual-core/multiple processors.] Using the ATI Catalyst Control Center: This option is found under Display Options -> 3D Refresh Rate Override. Setting it to 60Hz makes it match KA's 60 FPS cap, getting rid of the lag. (This method works best for players with LCD screens, since the flickering can be hard on the eyes for players with CRT monitors. However, the flickering may be perferable to the fire-lag experienced, of which can make thee game unplayable in some instances.)

(We're currently investigating using this fix for Nvidia players as well. We expect to have an answer posted shortly.)

[color=DarkOrange]#13: I’ve heard the term ‘NGA’. What is this?

A: ‘NGA’ stands for ‘Next Generation Academy’.[/color] This is a total conversion for KA that takes place in the Next Generation era, utilizing ships, HUDs etc. from that era. More information and downloads can be found at:

[color=DarkOrange] #14: What tools do I need to create my own mods? [/color]

A: There are a number of different programs that are used to mod Klingon Academy.The most readily available one is Notepad (or any other text editor). This is used to edit the .shp files, of which controls the ship’s speed, maneuverability, weapon strength, resilience, shield strength, etc. The only thing you won’t be able to alter with this is the way a mod looks or what weapons it fires. It can also be used to modify planetary systems. Tutorials on .shp and system modding can be found at:

Textures can be altered with any graphics editor that can load .bmp’s and .pcx’s. This can be any graphics program, such as Photostyler.

The model files for Klingon Academy (.lwo’s) are created/edited by a 3D program called ‘LightWave v5.6’. This is a professional grade 3D utility that is used to produce animation for television and movies, and thus it is rather expensive. As well, only version 5.6 can be used reliably to produce model meshes for Klingon Academy, and this version of the software has become rather rare. However…

There is an alternative program that can be used to build the models, ‘Anim8tor’, of which is used in tandem with an .lwo converter developed for the Klingon Academy community by J. Körber:

This Editor can also be used by LightWave 7 users so their models can be used in Klingon Academy: After making the model in LW 7 export your model back to LW 5 format, then in Körber’s Editor the object can be re-saved as a LW 5.6 file.